Church of St. Panteleimon

The castle of Monolithos. Rhodes.

Built on the foundations of another, older castle, the castle of Monolithos lies about 236m high on an amazingly difficult natural terrain which made its construction even more challenging. Under the orders of Grand Master D’Aubusson, and after having overcome the difficulties of transporting the building materials needed for its erection on the rocky outcrop, the castle was finally built, constituting one of the most important fortifications of Rhodes, due to its strategic location that allowed a clear view of the Mediterranean. Its extremely challenging route and position, also made it very difficult for the enemies, including Ottomans, to manage to seize the castle, forcing them to retrieve empty-handed.

Today only some external parts of the fortifications remain, but they are in a quite well reserved condition. But what worths embarking on an arduous attempt to climp the steep hill, are the magnificent whitewashed churches, the two 15th century chapels of St. Panteleimon and St. George and the breathtaking view of the mountain of Akramytis, the village of Monolithos right below it, the island Halki and of course the vast Aegean Sea.
Some people claim that the name Monolithos (standing stone and/ or monolith) has not been given due to the rock, on which the castle is built, but due to a black monolith with metaphysical powers that the Knights brought from the Holy Land. They even say that this monolith is still buried there and if anyone ever dares to dig it up, the whole island will sink!
_____
Music: Slow Motion Part 3
by: Peter Rudenko

Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (4.0) 2016
I created all visual content.
CC BY 4.0 International - Music Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (4.0) - Music Licensed for free to Share and Adapt
for any purpose, even commercially.
license

Wine Tasting in Embonas with Romantic Sunset at Monolithos

Escape for Romantic Sunset at Monolithos Castle in South Rhodes. The castle was built around 1480 by the Knights of St John and it is certainly an impressive sight. The structure of the enormous rock is breathtaking by itself and it evokes its name Monolithos (Lonely Rock) perfectly. The fortress at Monolithos came under attack many times but no one ever were able to conquer it.

In old times, this castle was considered one of the four most powerful fortresses on the island, but today only the external walls fortifications remain. Inside the perimeter of the walls there are two 15th century chapels, St Panteleimon and St George. Looking around the ruins it is easy to notice that the castle was actually built on the foundations of another, older castle.

But it's not for the ruins or even the beautiful whitewashed churches you should climb there -- it's the breathtaking view that looks over the sea and the numerous islets off the western coast, the mountain of Akramytis and innumerable hills, as well as the village of Monolithos below. As a visitor once said: In Greece, you know, the landscape often gives you a sense of the presence of Gods. The site of Monolithos is certainly one of these.

We will stay there for the Romantic Sunset, which we believe is even more spectacular than in Santorini!

But before that we are going to visit Stafylos in Embonas village for wine tasting! Embonas village is famous for the big amount of vineyards and unbelievably good wine. For our stop there you will be able to see a small traditional house of Embonas and to have a feeling how the people of the village used to live many years ago.

Ever wonder how souma drink is made? We are going to show you the distillery where locals are producing it, where you will taste this drink together with different kinds of honey, oil and BIG amounts of incredible good local wines, which you will never find in supermarkets to buy! Take your time to try as many as you want under the view of Attaviros mountain.

After wine tasting you are going to have a free time in Embonas village, where we recommend to try local delicatessens, such as tyrocrocketes, pitaroudia, anthus and many more. Combined with local wine it will leave you unforgettable memories.
Departure Information

Departure: 12:00 pickup from the hotel you are staying.
Return: 21:00 to the hotel you are staying.
Price: 75 Euros (wine tasting included, food not included)